Transcript of Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show" on January 17, 2011

STEWART: Just out of curiosity, does health care reform kill... destroy... slowly sop up jobs? Well, according to the Congressional Budget Office, it will create a 0.5% decrease in the labor force, due to older workers being able to retire earlier because they don't have to worry about their health care, and others voluntarily leaving the work force or reducing their hours.

So it is job-killing, in the sense that getting more sleep at night is awake-killing. The accuracy argument could benefit the Democrats. The semantic argument cannot benefit the Democrats. Steve Doocy, Fox and Friends, make that point explicit for us.

Excerpt from "Fox and Friends," 1/17/2011:

      STEVE DOOCY: Ah, Mr. Weiner, let's start with you. You think that the Republicans are tone-deaf by calling it the Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act. Why?

      ROBERT WEINER: Well, it's not only wrong tone, but when you look at what's in the bill, it's just wrong! The bill creates 300,000 new jobs. There are a 160 amendments Democrats put in the bill that are mostly tax breaks for small businesses. And when you look at the fact that the bill creates these new services of pre-existing...

      DOOCY: Whoa, whoa, whoa, Mr. Weiner...

      WEINER: ...conditions, lifetime benefits for seniors...

      DOOCY: Mr. Weiner...

      WEINER: ...ah, yes?

      DOOCY: Mr. Weiner, we're not talking about the bill, we're talking about the name of the bill!

STEWART: Hey man, we didn't bring you on here to spout facts! We're here to bitch about wording! Now let's try it again. Your role is whiny aggrieved liberal, we'll take it from the part in the script where we give the conservative guest free rein to mis-characterize the health care bill... and action!

      BOB MCEWEN: Liberals don't want to focus on the issue, that this is the most destructive piece of legislation to hit our economy in our lifetime, and therefore they want to focus on anything else.

      DOOCY: Mr. Weiner, I'll give you the final word.

      WEINER: Well, let's focus on the issue, because the bill allows...

      DOOCY: of the name...

      WEINER: ...pre-existing conditions, seniors, drugs...

      DOOCY: ...of the name...

      WEINER: ...children under 26...

      DOOCY: ...the problem with the name...

      WEINER: ...lifetime benefits...

STEWART: Weiner, what part of "we don't want people to understand" don't you understand?